April 2021

Author John Mole wrote a book about restoring "a tumbledown ruin on a hillside" in Evia, entitled It's All Greek to Me! in 2004. He and his family have been coming to Greece every summer since then (pre-COVID, that is).

John was born in Birmingham and has British (and Irish, when convenient) nationality. He graduated from Christ Church Oxford with a degree in French and German, then took an MBA from INSEAD, the international business school in Fontainebleau, France. At that time I was working as a secretary there and it was where I first encountered his comedic writing skills: he was co-producer of a comic strip newsletter which gently but hilariously made fun of the management and the professors. I still have a copy of it to this day.

His latest book, Harley and the Holy Mountain, which traces his journey from his house in Evia to Mount Athos on his trusty (and rusty!) old motorbike is not only full of laughs but also extremely descriptive of the landscape and history of the places he stops to visit on the way. Even for someone like me who has lived in Greece for many years and always been interested in the country's history, mythology, customs and language, I found this book to be a great source of information. It comes highly recommended!

Jeannette Arduino